When the morning bell rang, all the ministers above the third rank who were sitting by the fire and chatting in the gatehouse, led by Zhuo Yixing and Nangong Yiyu, stood up and walked out.
The ministers in the sheltered corridor stood on both sides and followed them in one after another.
In this snowy wind, all the ministers entered the Xuande Hall, which represented the highest power center of the Wu Dynasty.
The one guarding the Xuande Hall is the old eunuch Jia Nanxing!
He returned to the Wu Dynasty with Yu Wenyun and his party, and was ordered by Emperor Wu to rebuild the Twelve Inner Palaces in the palace. After the Queen Mother Xi's rebellion, Emperor Wu ascended the throne and killed all the eunuchs and maids in the palace or exiled them, resulting in a complete lack of people in the palace.
Emperor Wu was a lazy person, the kind of person who could feed his whole family if he was well fed.
He didn't need anyone to serve him, so the palace remained empty.
But Fu Xiaoguan is coming back, so the palace naturally cannot be left empty anymore. The fat man threw the job to Jia Nanxing.
What could Jia Nanxing do?
These ladies had already moved into the harem, and it was obviously impossible to do without servants to serve them. So Jia Nanxing had no choice but to obey the order. In just two months, she personally selected eunuchs and palace maids and really reorganized the Twelve Inner Palaces.
As the most important eunuch in the Twelve Inner Censors, he was afraid that the newly recruited eunuchs did not know the rules, so he had to take charge himself.
Following him was a young eunuch named Liu Jin, who was quite smart. Jia Nanxing thought that since this young eunuch was about the same age as the emperor, it would be better to train him. In the future, she would let Liu Jin be the eunuch of the Imperial Household Department to accompany the emperor as he grew up.
His Highness returned to the court, ascended the throne, and then held several court meetings, all of which Liu Jin participated in.
Usually, when she was with Eunuch Jia, Jia Nanxing told him many glorious deeds done by His Majesty. In Liu Jin's heart, His Majesty was the supreme being!
What Jia Nanxing wants is Liu Jin's absolute loyalty to His Majesty!
All the ministers were already standing in the Xuande Hall. Eunuch Jia raised the Buddhist whisk in his hand and shouted, "Your Majesty has arrived!"
As his shrill voice rang out, Fu Xiaoguan, wearing a dragon robe, stepped into the Xuande Hall under the protection of Ning Siyan.
He walked straight up to the Dragon Platform, and all the ministers bowed in greeting, shouting, "Welcome, Your Majesty!"
"No need to be polite!"
"Thank you!"
Originally, all ministers had to kneel, but this rule was changed on the first day that Fu Xiaoguan ascended the throne.
There are not many young ministers among the hundreds of ministers below. He always feels uncomfortable and thinks it will shorten his lifespan when they kowtow to him every day!
This is a rule that has been passed down for thousands of years, but it was changed by Fu Xiaoguan with just a few words!
So much so that after the coronation ceremony, the left and right prime ministers rushed to the imperial study, arguing that His Majesty had violated etiquette, but were rebuked by the retired emperor who was drinking tea in the imperial study: "Etiquette? Bullshit etiquette! He is the emperor now, and he has the final say on everything. Aren't you two old guys worried that you won't be able to get up after kneeling down?"
Unable to communicate with the retired emperor, the two ministers left in anger, but the etiquette was reversed and no one spoke up anymore.
"You have to be ruthless to deal with these guys, otherwise they will dare to ride on your head!"
This is what the fat man said to Fu Xiaoguan. Of course, Fu Xiaoguan did not refute it.
"My fellow ministers, today is the thirteenth day of the first lunar month of the first year of Tiande, and it is the first grand court meeting since I ascended the throne."
He is still not used to being addressed as "I".
Fu Xiaoguan stood in front of the desk on the stage, holding the documents with both hands and a smile on his face.
"The first resolution of this grand court meeting is to reform the system... The Wu Dynasty's power center will undergo the following changes. Everyone, listen carefully!"
All the ministers immediately raised their heads and looked at Fu Xiaoguan, their eyes full of surprise.
The first major act upon the ascension of a new emperor is usually to introduce tax reductions and exemptions, grant amnesty and release some prisoners from prison. However, this emperor wants to change the system... The political system of the Wu Dynasty has remained unchanged for more than 500 years since its founding. What is the significance of his move?
Only the left and right prime ministers knew about this matter, because just yesterday, in the imperial study, Fu Xiaoguan had already given them a brief account of it.
"First, remove the prime minister and establish the Secretariat, the Ministry of Personnel, and the Ministry of Chancellery."
"The Secretariat is responsible for drafting government decrees, while the Ministry of Personnel reviews the Secretariat's drafts to decide whether to implement them. The Shangshu Province is the executive body, and under it are the six ministries, which implement the bills or draft policies that have been reviewed and approved. This is... the Three-Province, Six-Ministry System!"
"I appoint the former Right Prime Minister Zhuo Yixing as the highest official in the Secretariat, the Minister of the Secretariat, of the second rank. Nangong Yiyu as the highest official in the Ministry of Personnel, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, of the second rank. The Minister of Revenue Meng Changping is promoted to the Minister of the Ministry of the Secretariat, in charge of the six ministries, of the second rank..."
"Besides the three provinces and six ministries, there is the Imperial Liberation Bureau. This bureau oversees all officials and oversees the entire nation! The former Tianji Pavilion serves as the basic framework for the Imperial Liberation Bureau. Zhou Tongtong is the highest official of the Imperial Liberation Bureau, a third-rank official, directly reporting to me!"
"A new Ministry of Commerce will be established, independent of the six ministries, and will be managed by me personally. I appoint Yun Xiyan as Minister of Commerce, Zong Shiji as Deputy Minister, and the rest of the people who returned from Wofeng Road will be incorporated into the Ministry of Commerce..."
"In terms of military affairs, Zhuo Bieli is appointed as the Grand Marshal of the Three Armies. Currently, the three armies under him are: the Excalibur Army, the Navy, and the various border garrisons..."
"...This is the detailed structure of the Three Provinces, Six Ministries, Twenty-Four Departments, the Imperial Office, the Nine Temples, Five Institutions, and the local official system. Within this structure, I will refine the responsibilities of each position. Officials for vacancies in certain positions will be recommended by the relevant departments, evaluated by the Ministry of Personnel, and approved and signed by the highest officials of the three provinces..."
He spoke so eloquently that all the ministers below were dumbfounded.
But they still pricked up their ears and listened carefully, afraid of missing a word.
This was an unprecedented division of power. The new emperor used this method to directly weaken the power of the original left and right prime ministers and was restrained by this system.
but!
Once such a structure is formed, his power as emperor will also be weakened in disguise!
All policies, even those made by the emperor, would be subject to review by the three provinces... This made all officials confused, even the former left and right prime ministers, they did not understand why His Majesty would tie his own hands.
The purpose of being an emperor is to have supreme power.
But what about him? He put such a shackle on himself, so Zhuo Yihang frowned, wondering why he did this.
Only Nangong Yiyu looked at Fu Xiaoguan meaningfully after thinking about it, with a calm look between his brows and even a knowing smile on his face.
Liu Jin brought Fu Xiaoguan a cup of tea. Fu Xiaoguan took a big sip and talked for two full hours!
Finally, I have finished talking about this new power framework. This is the choice he made in the current environment. This is the prototype of the separation of powers, which is based on the structure of the Tang Dynasty.
He didn't expect to achieve everything in one go, the road ahead is long... I just want to have an easier time in the future!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
